The Cyrus Pinkham Collection contains 18 reels of amateur 16 mm. shot primarily by Cyrus Pinkham between 1937 and 1940. The films record a transitional period in Pinkham’s life; he began these years in residence with his parents in Long Island, moved to New York City, and then relocated to Maine. Throughout these years, Pinkham documented many family events in New York and Maine, including the wedding of his sister, Margaret, and visits to a family house in Boothbay Harbor, Maine. To these family records, Pinkham brought a filmmaker’s attention to aesthetic and technical detail, and in many cases carefully planned the action with his subjects in advance. Pinkham also recorded his family as performers in comic and dramatic narrative shorts. His documentary essays of the 1939 New York World’s Fair and of Rockefeller Center, where he worked as a tour guide, are of interest as much for their form as their subjects. The collection also includes footage of notable figures: Arctic explorer Donald MacMillan, Lowell Thomas, Mary Pickford and Buddy Rogers.

Biographical/Historical Notes

Cyrus Pinkham was born in 1915 in Rockland, Maine. He died in 1989, at the age of 74. He went to high school in Catonsville, Maryland, where he was part of the Vagabond Players, the longest continuously running Little Theater group. There he was involved in stage productions and did make-up and lighting. He built a stage in his parents' basement, which gets referred to and used as a set in the films, and had a screen for showing his films there as well. He moved to New York in the late 1930s, where he held a number of jobs from personal assistant to the president of a cigar company, to Rockefeller Center tour guide, and finally with Dobbs Hats. Around this time, his sister Margaret started The Maine Bag Company, back in Maine. It became a quick success and so to help, Cyrus and his friend Bill Waters would regularly travel up to Maine on the weekends to assist Margaret. Eventually they both moved to Maine and worked for the company full-time. Cyrus did this until his death, having taken over the business after Margaret died young from cancer. The films in the Cyrus Pinkham Collection date from this transitional period between living at home, moving to New York and then leaving the city to relocate to Maine. He didn’t make films again until the 1970s, when he bought another Bell and Howell camera and began to make films of his travels with his partner, Ned Reiner.

NHF

Preserve

Without cold storage at low humidity, the film in your basement or your neighbor's attic cracks, rots, and fades, and part of our region's history is lost. NHF staff members have the skills and tools to preserve your valued moving images.

Explore

There are many ways to explore, use, and share our moving images and associated materials for research, teaching, and the joy of discovery. Start by exploring the 300+ collections described online. Visit our store to preview DVDs for great gifts. Become a member to borrow videos.

Join

We need partners in our efforts to collect, preserve, and share northern New England's moving image history. Join educators, archivists, film enthusiasts, history buffs, and people who love the Alamo Theatre. Become a member today.